1 ÄMARI AIR BASE, Estonia – If a Soldier participating in DEFENDER-Europe 21 in Estonia starts feeling ill and is exhibiting signs and symptoms of COVID-19 – he or she will meet these two Army officers very quickly.
Army 2nd Lt. Ryan Alfalaij is the COVID-19 isolation facility officer in charge at Ämaria Air Base, and Capt. Abigail Peloquin is the base operations support officer in charge at the air base.
Peloquin said there are 11 COVID-19 isolation facilities, or ISOFACs, supporting DEFENDER-Europe 21 located across the entire exercise’s footprint.
“Basically every single country DEFENDER-Europe 21 touches, there’s an isolation facility,” Peloquin said.
If a Soldier participating in DEFENDER-Europe 21 here in Estonia – either at Tapa Barracks or Ämaria Air Base – is showing signs and symptoms of COVID-19, the team at Ämaria would pick them up and transport them to the ISOFAC to be quarantined and tested, said Alfalaij.